Master prompt
Statutory declaration drafting templates — Oaths and Declarations Act 1957 (NZ)
NZ statutory declarations under Oaths and Declarations Act 1957. Witnesses, structure, and templates for the most common INZ use cases: name change, single status, relationship history, missing birth certificate.
NZDocumentsStatutory declarationOaths and Declarations Act 1957JPINZ 1027
Draft a statutory declaration for [DECLARANT_NAME] under the Oaths and Declarations Act 1957 (NZ). Purpose: [DECLARATION_PURPOSE].
§1 — STATUTORY FRAMEWORK
Oaths and Declarations Act 1957:
• s.9 — declaration may be made before any person listed in s.11 of the Act
• s.11 — authorised witnesses include:
(a) A Justice of the Peace (JP) for NZ
(b) A NZ-admitted solicitor (within currency of practising certificate)
(c) A Registrar or Deputy Registrar of any NZ Court
(d) Notary Public (NZ or overseas)
(e) Member of Parliament
(f) Other officers listed in s.11
• s.13 — for declarations made outside NZ, witness must be:
• Commonwealth representative of NZ (NZ High Commissioner / Consul)
• Notary Public of that country (then apostilled — see Prompt 3)
• Judge / Magistrate of a court of record
• Offence — knowingly making a false declaration: up to 3 years imprisonment (s.111, Crimes Act 1961)
§2 — WITNESS SELECTION FOR [WITNESS_TYPE]
If declarant is in NZ:
• JP — free service; find via Royal Federation of NZ JPs (jpfed.org.nz); JP signing rooms operate in courts, libraries, council offices
• Solicitor — typically NZ$30-80 fee; quicker turnaround
• Court Registrar — at any District Court front counter; free
• Recommendation: JP for routine declarations; solicitor for complex ones (relationship history)
If declarant is offshore in [COUNTRY_OF_ORIGIN] (e.g. India, UAE):
• Notary Public in that country
• Then apostille per Hague Convention (see Prompt 3) — MEA apostille for India
• Then submit to INZ alongside original passport / supporting evidence
§3 — STANDARD DECLARATION STRUCTURE
A NZ statutory declaration must contain:
(a) Heading: "STATUTORY DECLARATION" (caps, centred, top of page)
(b) Statutory anchor line: "I, [DECLARANT_NAME] of [DECLARANT_ADDRESS], [OCCUPATION], solemnly and sincerely declare that:"
(c) Numbered paragraphs setting out the facts (one fact per paragraph; chronological where possible)
(d) Concluding paragraph: "AND I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true and by virtue of the Oaths and Declarations Act 1957."
(e) Declared at [LOCATION] this [DAY] day of [MONTH] [YEAR]
(f) Declarant signature
(g) Witness block:
• "Before me — "
• Witness signature
• Witness printed name
• Witness capacity: "A Justice of the Peace for New Zealand" / "A Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand" / etc.
• Witness JP/Solicitor registration number (if applicable)
• Witness address
• Witness date + stamp/seal
§4 — TEMPLATE A — NAME CHANGE DECLARATION
Use when: passport name differs from birth certificate name (very common for Indian applicants where surname dropped after marriage, or where transliteration changed across documents).
Draft:
STATUTORY DECLARATION
I, [DECLARANT_NAME] of [DECLARANT_ADDRESS], [OCCUPATION], solemnly and sincerely declare that:
1. I was born on [DECLARANT_DOB] in [PLACE OF BIRTH], India.
2. My full name at birth as recorded on my birth certificate is "[FULL NAME ON BIRTH CERTIFICATE]". A certified copy of my birth certificate is annexed hereto as Annexure A.
3. My current passport (Republic of India passport number [PASSPORT NO]) records my name as "[NAME ON PASSPORT]". A copy of the biographical page is annexed as Annexure B.
4. The difference arose as follows: [explain — e.g. on marriage in [year], I adopted my husband's surname / I dropped my middle name when applying for my passport at age 18 / my name was transliterated differently when my Aadhaar was issued].
5. I am the same person referred to in both documents. I have not used any other names except as set out in this declaration.
6. I attach the following supporting evidence:
• Annexure A: Birth certificate
• Annexure B: Passport biographical page
• Annexure C: Marriage certificate dated [DATE]
• Annexure D: Any other corroborating documents (PAN / Aadhaar)
AND I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true and by virtue of the Oaths and Declarations Act 1957.
Declared at [LOCATION] this [DAY] day of [MONTH] [YEAR].
___________________________
[DECLARANT_NAME]
Before me —
___________________________
[WITNESS NAME], [CAPACITY]
§5 — TEMPLATE B — SINGLE STATUS DECLARATION
Use when: applicant declares never married OR previously married and now divorced/widowed (for Partner-of-NZ-Citizen visa where evidence of single status is required).
Draft:
STATUTORY DECLARATION
I, [DECLARANT_NAME] of [DECLARANT_ADDRESS], [OCCUPATION], solemnly and sincerely declare that:
1. I was born on [DECLARANT_DOB] and am [AGE] years old at the date of this declaration.
2. [Option for never-married]: I have never been married. I have not entered into any civil union or de facto relationship that has been formally registered or recognised by any government authority.
2. [Option for divorced]: I was married to [FORMER SPOUSE NAME] on [DATE] in [PLACE]. The marriage was dissolved by decree of divorce issued by [COURT] on [DATE]. A certified copy of the decree absolute is annexed as Annexure A. I have not remarried since.
2. [Option for widowed]: I was married to [DECEASED SPOUSE NAME] on [DATE] in [PLACE]. [Spouse name] passed away on [DATE]. A certified copy of the death certificate is annexed as Annexure A. I have not remarried since.
3. I am currently in a genuine and stable relationship with [PARTNER NAME], a [NZ Citizen / NZ Resident] of [PARTNER ADDRESS]. We have been living together as partners since [DATE].
4. I am free under the laws of India and of New Zealand to enter into marriage / partnership with [PARTNER NAME].
AND I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true and by virtue of the Oaths and Declarations Act 1957.
[Signature block as §3]
§6 — TEMPLATE C — RELATIONSHIP HISTORY DECLARATION (Partner visa)
Use when: Partner-of-NZ-Citizen / Resident visa requires Form INZ 1027 statutory declaration of the relationship. Both partners typically sign one each.
Structure:
Numbered paragraphs covering:
1. How and when we met (date, place, context)
2. Period of casual / dating phase (dates)
3. Date relationship became exclusive
4. Date we began living together (with address)
5. Joint commitments (lease, bank account, household bills) with dates
6. Engagement / marriage (if applicable)
7. Periods of separation (with reasons — work travel, family obligations) and how we stayed in contact
8. Family and friends who know us as a couple
9. Plans for the future (intended NZ residence, employment, children, etc.)
10. Current state of relationship
Length: 1,500-2,000 words typical
Each numbered paragraph should be FACTUAL (dates, addresses, named third parties), not emotive
§7 — TEMPLATE D — MISSING BIRTH CERTIFICATE / DOCUMENT
Use when: original document is unavailable (e.g. lost, destroyed in fire, was never issued — older Indian rural birth registrations were often informal).
Draft:
STATUTORY DECLARATION
I, [DECLARANT_NAME] of [DECLARANT_ADDRESS], [OCCUPATION], solemnly and sincerely declare that:
1. I was born on [DECLARANT_DOB] in [VILLAGE/TOWN], [DISTRICT], [STATE], India to [FATHER'S NAME] and [MOTHER'S NAME].
2. No formal birth certificate was issued for me at the time of birth. In my village/community, birth registration was not consistently practiced in [YEAR OF BIRTH].
3. I have attempted to obtain a delayed birth certificate from [RELEVANT REGISTRAR / GRAM PANCHAYAT] but [explain outcome — e.g. records do not exist; office has stated they cannot issue retrospectively].
4. Evidence of my date of birth is established by:
• School Leaving Certificate from [SCHOOL] dated [YEAR] showing date of birth [DECLARANT_DOB] — annexed as Annexure A
• Aadhaar card showing date of birth — Annexure B
• PAN card showing date of birth — Annexure C
• Passport (issued [YEAR]) showing date of birth — Annexure D
• Affidavit by my father / mother / village elder confirming date of birth — Annexure E
5. The date of birth [DECLARANT_DOB] has been used consistently across all my official documents.
[Signature block as §3]
§8 — TEMPLATE E — SOLE PARENTAL AUTHORITY (for child applications)
Use when: only one parent is applying for a child's visa and the other parent's consent is unavailable.
Draft:
STATUTORY DECLARATION
I, [DECLARANT_NAME] of [DECLARANT_ADDRESS], [OCCUPATION], solemnly and sincerely declare that:
1. I am the [mother / father] of [CHILD NAME] born on [CHILD DOB] in [PLACE]. A certified copy of the child's birth certificate is annexed as Annexure A.
2. The other parent of [CHILD NAME] is [OTHER PARENT NAME].
3. The following is the situation regarding the other parent's consent for [CHILD NAME] to migrate to New Zealand:
[Choose applicable]
(a) The other parent has provided written consent — annexed as Annexure B
(b) The other parent is deceased — death certificate annexed as Annexure B
(c) I have sole legal custody by court order dated [DATE] — order annexed as Annexure B
(d) The other parent's whereabouts are unknown despite reasonable efforts to locate them. I have attempted to contact them via [METHOD] on [DATES] without success.
(e) The other parent has had no contact with the child since [DATE] and has not contributed financially to the child's upbringing since [DATE].
4. To the best of my knowledge, the other parent does not object to the child travelling to / residing in New Zealand.
5. I undertake to make [CHILD NAME] available to the other parent for contact / access as ordered by any competent court.
[Signature block as §3]
§9 — FORMATTING + EXECUTION
• Print on white A4 — single-sided
• Single-spaced; legal-style numbered paragraphs
• Each page initialed by declarant + witness at bottom
• Annexures: stapled at back; each annexure first page stamped/signed by witness with "This is the document marked Annexure A referred to in the statutory declaration of [DECLARANT_NAME] declared before me on [DATE]"
• One original + two copies (original to INZ; one to client file; one client retains)
§10 — RED FLAGS
□ Declarant signs BEFORE the witness sees them sign → invalid; redo in witness's presence
□ Witness signs without being on the s.11 authorised list → invalid
□ JP / solicitor stamp missing → likely returned by INZ
□ Annexures not properly identified → INZ may not connect them to declaration
□ Declaration contains opinions or argument rather than facts → reduces weight
□ Declaration contradicts other application documents → flagged for character review under s.16
□ Declaration witnessed offshore without apostille → must redo per Prompt 3
§11 — POST-DECLARATION
• Scan and upload to INZ Online as part of the application bundle
• Retain original in client file (INZ may request for verification)
• If facts change post-declaration (e.g. divorce finalised, additional employer info), supplementary declaration may be needed
End with: "DRAFT — for IAA-licensed immigration adviser review. Verify against current INZ Operations Manual before submission."Unlock the vault to see the full prompt